New Beginnings
by wordswontstop
Summary: Gibbs adopts the daughters of his former marine buddy.  Bad summary... First Fanfiction. Sorry! Don't hate me?
1. Chapter 1

Hellos! I'm Ryleigh. This is my first FanFiction, so try not to completely tear me apart. I would really appreciate reviews though! Oh, and I'm really grammar picky. If I've messed up something, please let me know! I'll be very grateful. :)

I just recently became obsessed with NCIS (and by obsessed, I mean _obsessed. _My friends are working on an intervention.), so I don't know absolutely everything there is to know about the show. I will probably mess up things. Rewrite: I will mess up things. Hopefully they won't be too vitally major. (Is that a word? It should be.) Anywho, this story is about two girls whose parents are killed, and are adopted by Gibbs. The chapters will probably be fairly short, but I'll try to post as often as possible.

And…. Yeah. I think that's about it. Message me? Review? Favorite? Anything?

Update: I forgot to post a disclaimer. Is that really really terrible? I'm such a noob. So.

Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS. (No? Really?) However, Grace and Alyssa Tanner are my original characters.

Two blonde haired girls stood in the airport by the baggage claim. The older one, in her late teens, was leaning against a wall, watching the younger girl, who looked about six, as she gazed wide-eyed at everyone around her. She fiddled with a cell phone and occasionally laughed at something the little one said. Her eyes were red-rimmed and she ran her fingers through her hair repeatedly. The little girl sat on the floor beside two pieces of luggage and stared at the passer-by with her thumb in my mouth. She quickly removed it to speak to the teenager, then popped it back in.

Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs took a breath upon seeing them. He could see reflectionsof their dad, his old marine buddy, in both the girls, like the little one's curly hair and the older one's tender smile and grey blue eyes. Their father, Lieutenant Daniel Tanner, had been a good friend of Gibbs' before he was murdered five years ago. The brakes of Daniel's car had been tampered with, but no one was ever convicted for the murder of Lt. Tanner. Gibbs had looked over the case a few times, but it hadn't been assigned to him, and with no new evidence, it was unlikely that it would ever be solved. Daniel's wife, Maria, had raised the girls after their father's death, up until two days ago, when a hit-and-run had taken Maria's life. Her oldest daughter, Alyssa, had been in the car when it happened, but somehow managed to survive. It had appeared to be an attempt to kill them both. The Lieutenant's case was being re-opened, along with his wife's, and Gibbs was finally given the assignment. It seemed that someone wanted this family dead.

Gibbs was happy to take the case. He wanted to know what had happened to his old friend, why he and his wife had been murdered. But he had no idea at the time of the affect that it would have on his life afterwards.

He thought back to the call that had changed his whole world.

"_Yeah, Gibbs." _

"_This is Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs?" A man's voice echoed through the cell phone line._

_Gibbs sighed. "Yeah…" Hadn't he just said that?_

"_This is Parick O'Connor. I'm Maria Tanner's lawyer?" He said, like it was a question._

"_Uh-huh." Gibbs remembered Rule Number 13: Never, ever involve a lawyer. _

"_Um… Well… I, um…" _

"_Mr. O'Connor." Gibbs growled. _

"_Yes, sir?"_

"_Why are you calling me?"_

"_It's about Alyssa and Grace Tanner. The lieutenant's daughters?"_

"_Yeah, I know 'em."_

"_You do?" Gibbs stayed silent. "Right, well…" The lawyer took a deep breath. "You've been named their legal guardian."_

Gibbs blinked back to reality, to the two young women standing in front of him now. The teenager looked at him, suspiciously, sizing him up. She released a silent exasperated sigh and then put out her hand. "Special Agent Gibbs?"

"Yes. You must be Alyssa." She nodded her head as he shook her hand. "The last time I saw you, you were smaller than this little one right here." Gibbs looked down to the younger girl. She stared up at him, wide-eyed and completely quiet, her small fist in front of her face, thumb in her mouth.

Alyssa nudged her. "Gracie…"

The little girl pulled her finger from her mouth. "Hi," she whispered, then popped her thumb back in.

"She's shy." Alyssa made excuses for Grace.

"It's okay." Gibbs knelt down on one knee in front of the small child.

"Hi, sweetheart. I'm Special Agent Gibbs. You and your sister are going to come stay with me for a while, okay?" He winked at Grace as she quickly and nervously nodded her head. He looked back towards Alyssa. "Are these your bags?"

"Yessir."

Gibbs began to tell her not to call him 'sir' , but caught himself. Now would probably not be a good time for correction. He picked up the bags and lead the girls to the car. After driving for a nearly silent fifteen minutes, Gibbs pulled into the NCIS office.

"We're going to make a quick stop here, okay?" Both girls stayed silent, but unbuckled their seat belts and climbed out of the car after him. He wondered vaguely if Grace was still small enough to need a car seat. He held open the door for them to enter. Once they reached the bullpen, he sat Gracie down in a chair beside a shocked-looking Ziva, handed her a pen and some paper. "Are you okay to sit her and color for a bit while I talk to your sister?" Her big brown eyes opened wide and she stared up at Alyssa.

"Yeah, you can color me a picture, right, Gray? I'll be right back." Alyssa smiled towards the tow-headed child.

Gibbs nodded to Ziva. "Watch her."

"Right." Ziva stared at the little one, looking almost as lost as Grace did.

He waited until the girl picked up the pen before leading Alyssa into an interrogation room and sitting down across the table from her. "Are you thirsty? I can get you some water…"

"I'm fine."

"Okay."

The two stared at each other for a long, tense moment before Alyssa looked down at the table. "Listen, I'd really prefer not to leave Gracie for long, she tends to get upset when I'm not around…"

"Then we'll try to make this quick. I need you tell me about the accident."

"I already talked to the police."

"And now you need to tell me."

Alyssa looked at him, and he caught a bright flash of anger behind her eyes.

"What were you doing before the accident?"

"Is this an interrogation or something?"

"We just want your statement, Alyssa."

She sighed angrily, crossed her arms over her chest. "I was with my mom, and we had just dropped Gracie off at soccer practice. We were going to get some food at McDonald's. We were just driving along, and then this black truck came up behind us…"

"What kind of truck?"

She stared back at him. "A black one."

"Was it a Ford, or a Toyota or-"

"I don't know. I'm a girl. I don't pay attention to these things." Gibbs was a bit shocked that she had no recall for the make of the car, but pushed the thought aside. He sighed and nodded for her to continue. "Go on."

Alyssa took a slow breath. "Like I said, we were just driving along and this guy comes behind us, and he keeps following us. I noticed my mom kept looking in the rear view, kind of confused, but she didn't say anything. She started taking some quick turns without signaling, and driving around in circles and stuff. We were driving on this back road, and then the guy just floors it and slams right into our car. We fishtailed a little bit, Mom lost control of the wheel. We were headed towards this telephone pole…." Another slow breath, in and out. "We could both see that it was going to come right into the passenger seat, where I was sitting." Alyssa's eyes began to shine with tears, but none fell. "Mom swerved, and the wheels caught. She… hit the pole. Came right into the driver's side. They said she was killed upon impact."

Gibbs was impressed at the girl's calm. She had held herself together well so far.

"And you?"

"My head hit the dash, knocked me unconscious. I don't remember anything else, until I woke up in the hospital."

"The guy driving the truck…?"

She shrugged. "Dunno. Must've got out of there fast, I guess."

"You didn't see him at all?"

"The windows were tinted, really dark. I could see he was wearing sunglasses, a baseball cap. A sweatshirt with the hood up." She looked Gibbs in the eyes then. "Kinda weird, I think. Considering how hot it was. Like he was trying to hide his face or something." She deadpanned.

"Mm…."

"Are we done now?"

"Sure." He held out a hand to help her up, but she didn't take it. "Are you ready to go home?"

She paused. "My home is two thousand miles away." Alyssa's lips twitched into a brief, ironic smile. "But I guess I can go to yours."

They exited the interrogation room, Gibbs stopping to check that the session had been recorded for later review. It would be needed for further research into the case, but he felt that nothing new had been revealed through this non-interrogation. Hopefully, Abby could pull some evidence from the scene of the accident.

Alyssa rushed out to Gracie and snatched her up in her arms. "Hi baby doll. Miss me?" Grace nodded quickly and buried her head in her sister's shoulder. Alyssa looked awkwardly at Ziva. "Thanks… for watching her, I mean."

Gibbs stepped up behind her. "Alyssa, this is Ziva David, one of my agents. And that's Tony DiNozzo, and Tim McGee." He pointed to their respective locations. Tim smiled and waved at the girls. Tony made a goofy face to the little one, prompting her to giggle. Gibbs felt a slight hint of jealousy; already DiNozzo had gotten to a level with the girls that he hadn't yet reached. "Team, this is Gracie and Alyssa Tanner. My…" His voice trailed off and he hoped that no one had noticed the slip. "They're going to be staying with me."

Alyssa forced a tight smile and held her sister close on her hip. "Hi." Grace was nudged into making a small wave. "She's shy." Alyssa repeated, then shot a desperate glance at Gibbs.

He reached for the teenager's elbow and gently led her into the elevator. "I'll be back soon. Try to get something done without me." DiNozzo began to make a snarky remark as the doors slid shut and closed the three inside the small elevator.

Gracie's thumb stayed put inside her mouth and she rested her head on her older sister's shoulder. Alyssa bounced nervously from foot to foot. Gibbs took in the scene. Already, this was feeling like the longest night of his life.


	2. Chapter 2

Gibbs was fixing breakfast the next morning when Alyssa entered, looking sleep deprived. She sat down on a stool at the counter across from him and laid her head down. "Good morning." The teenager grumbled something incoherent. She was obviously not a morning person. "Right." Gibbs smiled slightly. At least she was showing some signs of normal teenage life. Gibbs set a cup of coffee down in front of her and she immediatly lifted her head.

"Mm. Good morning."

He smiled at her. "Will your sister be awake soon?"

Alyssa nodded. "Yeah, probably not much longer from now. Do you have any cereal?"

Three different kinds of sugared cereal appeared in front of her. "Picked this up when I heard you were coming."

She nodded, bit her lower lip softly. "So... you were expecting us?" Alyssa looked confused, but she tried to act as if she were only vaguely curious. She poured a bowl of cereal and twirled the spoon around in the milk.

Gibbs nodded. "When your mom's lawyer called."

"But you didn't know that you were in her will? To be our guardian?"

He considered lying, but couldn't see how it would help much. He shook his head. "Nope."

"So you weren't really expecting us..."

"I guess not." She nodded slowly, shoved down a bite of sugary flakes. Gibbs sat down in the chair next to her. "What were you expecting?"

"I don't know." Alyssa looked thoughtful. "I hadn't really thought about it, but I would've guessed we would stay with Jason."

"Jason?"

Alyssa looked up. "Yeah. Mom's boyfriend. Jason Hawkins. He was at the funeral."

Gibbs stared at her silently then sat down at the table across from her. "Tell me about this guy, Jason."

"Jason? He's a really great guy… They had been dating for a few months before… Wait, why are you looking at me like that?" Alyssa leaned forward. "You don't think…" She shook her head. "He couldn't have…"

Gibbs just stood up and pulled his cell phone from his pocket, dialed a number. "Yeah, DiNozzo, I need you to look up this guy, Jason Hawkins…." He looked at Alyssa for confirmation, but she stared at him silently with her mouth open. "Yeah. See if you can bring him in." He shut the phone.

Alyssa shot up from her chair suddenly, nearly knocking it to the ground. "Wait, Gibbs, this is not okay. He didn't… I mean, he's a good guy." Gibbs turned and headed towards the guest bedroom. Alyssa made no move to follow, but stomped her foot on the ground. "Gibbs! You can't do that!"

Gibbs ignored her and opened the door to the bedroom. Grace lay curled up on one side in her bed, a teddy bear in her right arm, her left thumb in her mouth. Her tangled long blonde hair lay tossed over her shoulder and face. He gently pushed back a strand from her eyes. "Hey, Gracie. Wake up, sweetheart." She stirred and rolled over to face him. She looked so cute and innocent, big brown eyes wide. "Time to get up." She nodded her head and he left the room. Grace emerged a moment later, wearing a long pink princess grown and still carrying her teddy. She followed him into the kitchen and sat down beside her sister, who was looking angrier by the second. Alyssa poured Grace a bowl of cereal and pushed it in front of her. The little girl ate like she was starving. Gibbs thought back to last night. What had she eaten? He sometimes went days with little more than coffee. He needed to start remembering that he was responsible for more than just himself now.

In a little over an hour later, the group had left for the NCIS office. Before, Gibbs had always been ready in under fifteen minutes, but six and sixteen year olds took a lot longer to prepare. He made another mental note of that fact while going in.

"What'cha got for me, Abs?" Gibbs entered the lab, holding a Caf-Pow in one hand and a coffee in the other. Alyssa trailed behind, carrying a pink-clad Gracie.

Abby typed furiously on the keyboard and didn't even turn. "The SUV that hit the victim's car was a '99 black Ford F-250, which narrows it down to only a hundred or so in the area. McGee's got a list of the owners, and he's comparing it to cell phone calls from the vic's phone. So far there's…" Abby twisted around in her chair. "No- Hi!" Abby looked from Gracie to Alyssa to Gibbs and back again.

"Abby Scuito, NCIS resident forensic scientist. Meet Alyssa and Grace Tanner." Gibbs introduced them with a small hand wave.

Abby's eyes widened. "Oh! Hi!" She jumped up from her chair to give the two girls a hug. Alyssa seemed astonish by the physical contact, but smiled anyways. "I heard you guys were staying with Gibbs, I don't know why I didn't think you would be coming here…Hi!" She said again and smiled animatedly.

Gibbs pressed the caffeinated drink into her hand. "What were you saying, Abs?"

Her smile faded. "No luck so far. But still looking."

"Good." They discussed other details of the case quietly for a few moments.

"Momma." Everyone in the went dead silent and stared at Grace, who had finally removed her thumb to speak the single word.

Alyssa sent a desperate glance to Gibbs, readjusting the little girl in her arms. "Sweetie, what do you need?"

"Where's momma?" Those were the most words Gibbs had ever heard Grace say, and also the most heartbreaking.

"I told you, Gracie, sweetheart. Momma's with Daddy and the angels now, okay?" Alyssa's eyes flooded and her voice broke. She looked worriedly from Gibbs to Grace to Abby, who took it as her hint to jump in.

"Hi, Gracie. I'm Abby! I have a stuffed hippo that makes funny noises. Wanna come see it?" She held her arms open to the little girl, who nodded her head and eagerly climbed into Abby's arms. It seemed that Grace had caught on to the emotional distress in the room and was as eager to escape as everyone else. Abby smiled back at Gibbs and Alyssa and led her to play with the stuffed toy.

"I'm going to go upstairs. Want to stay with Abby and Gracie?"

"Sure..." Alyssa sat down in a chair and pulled out a cell phone. She was acting more like a normal teen every second.

Two minutes later, Gibbs exited the elevator into the bullpen. Tony shot up from his chair, where he had been staring blankly at the computer for the past twenty minutes. "Morning boss." He handed Gibbs a folder and nodded to McGee, who opened the same folder onto the computer screen. "Jason Hawkins, 43, accountant. Started dating Maria Tanner in October of last year. Talked to hm just a few minuteds ago. He's headed in right now."

Gibbs opened the file and flipped a few pages. "Any reason why he might want to kill his girlfriend?"

Tony looked across his shoulder to Ziva who was walking towards him. "Seemed like they were fine to me. Besides, you know, her being dead and all."

"Yes, that does make things rather difficult.." Ziva slapped the back of his head and rolled her eyes. Tony smirked.

"He wanted to know how Lyssa and Gracie were, boss."

Crystal blue eyes swept up. "And you said what exactly, DiNozzo?"

"That they're, you know, fine."

Gibbs nodded. "Uh-huh."

"They are fine, right, boss?" He just stared at Tony silently. "Right."

Rye again! Sorry this chapter's shorter! Maybe more coming tonight. Maybe not... But definitely by the end of the week! Message, review, favorites all appreciated! :D


	3. Chapter 3

Hi! It's Ryleigh again! Don't you love these little commentaries before the story starts? I'd like to think that you are all hanging in anticipation of what happens next… Wishful thinking, I'm sure. Anyways, new chapter! And I just noticed, Abby, Alyssa, Gibbs, Grace. Funny, right? That was totally unplanned. Is this a sign that I should write/make this a Gabby fic? Opinions? Note: This chapter will contain spanking of a minor. Not your thing? Sorry! Otherwise, Enjoy!

Gibbs left early in the morning for the NCIS office, leaving Alyssa to watch her sister for the rest of the day. Alyssa didn't mind. She was used to her looking after Grace while her mother worked. Plus, it would give her time to email her friends and see if she could find a decent bookstore online. Maybe she would take Gray to the library later.

Alyssa dressed and ate before Grace awoke, and was retrieving the mail from the box when she tripped over something lying on the front step of the house. She leaned down to get a closer look at the small flat box she hadn't noticed earlier. She was about to carry it inside and leave it for Gibbs when she noticed that it was addressed to her. Thinking it was something she might have left at her home that had been sent to her, she opened the package and gasped.

Alyssa removed a bleary-eyed Grace from her bed and buckled her into the car seat in the car her mother had left her, setting the package in the backseat. Gracie immediately fell back asleep. Alyssa drove herself to the NCIS office, going fifteen miles over the speed limit. It was steaming hot, and she rolled down the windows in the hopes of relieving her weak air-conditioning. By the time she reached the bullpen, her hair was curling wildly and sweat was dripping across her forehead. She rushed up to Gibb's desk and dropped the package onto it, trying to catch her breath from her rush up the stairs.

He stared at her, confused, then opened the package. In front of him were hundreds of photos. Pictures of Grace, Alyssa, Maria, even pictures of Daniel from years ago. On top was a picture of Alyssa and Grace at the airport a few days ago. All the photos had been snapped from some distance away, but now it was obvious that someone had been stalking the Tanner family.

Immediately Gibbs jumped from his seat and grabbed his gun, tucking it into his waistband. He removed a pair of latex gloves from another desk drawer and put them on. He looked briefly up to Alyssa. "Where's Grace?"

"Left her with Abby."

"Good. Let's go get her." He picked up the package carefully and followed Alyssa to the elevator, ignoring the voices of his team calling him from behind. The elevator doors slid closed, cutting them off.

"Where did you find this?"

"On the doorstep. I went out to get the mail. It was just lying there." Alyssa stared blankly at the wall as the elevator began to move.

"You opened it?"

"No, it opened itself." Alyssa glared at him.

"Now is not the time for jokes."

Alyssa sighed and leaned against the back wall. "Sorry, I just… I mean, God, it's just-" She closed her eyes. "It's scary." Her eyes flickered back open. She looked at him like she expected him to argue, but he just nodded.

The elevator doors dinged opened and they exited into Abby's lab. The Goth jumped from her seat in front of Grace. "Hi, Gibbs! What's up?"

Gibbs looked slightly perplexed. Alyssa shrugged. "I didn't tell her anything. I didn't know what to say."

"Abs, start running this for prints." Gibbs lay the box down on a table as Abby slid a pair of gloves onto her hands.

"Okay…"

"I'm taking them home. Call me if you find anything."

"Right, sure. But what is…?"

Gibbs picked up Grace and swung her up onto his shoulders, then pressed the elevator button. "Bye, Abs." Grace waved goodbye as the three disappeared behind the closing doors.

"Huh. Okay, then." Abby turned up her music and got to work.

Ten hours later and Gibbs still hadn't heard anything from NCIS. He was unsure whether this meant bad news, no news, or that his team had been goofing off while Tony was in charge. He knew he could trust that Abby would have called him if she had found anything, but as she hadn't done that yet, he was beginning to worry about what was going on back at the bullpen. DiNozzo hadn't called, either, leading him to believe that Jason Hawkins still hadn't shown up. Odd that around the same time Jason's plane should have landed, the mysterious and disturbing box had arrived on his doorstep. But he had little time to think about that, as he had other, slightly more pressing things on his mind, including the crying six year old standing in front of him.

In the few days Alyssa and Grace had been at his house, things had improved only slightly. Gracie rarely ate and only spoke in one word sentences. She cried often and loudly, and wanted to be held by Alyssa at every second. Gibbs had gathered that Alyssa hadn't slept by her constant yawning and distant eyes. She patiently put up with Grace's relentless cries and did whatever she was asked to do with no argument. She was quiet and respectful. Gibbs had yet to see her shed a single tear.

Considering the unfortunate demise of both her parents and her current situation, Alyssa's lack of emotion seemed very unsettling. The only real emotion she had displayed was a fierce protection of her sister.

Gibbs frowned as Alyssa lowered a screaming Grace to the floor. "Gray, you have to stop crying now, okay? I'm right here. I won't go anywhere, promise." Alyssa tried to soothe her, but Grace wasn't having any of it. She continued to squeal and cry at a volume Gibbs would have thought impossible for that small of a child.

Seeing her cry reminded him of Kelly. Not that she cried often, but when she had, it was a full blown tantrum, similar to the one Grace was displaying now. Screaming, wailing, flailing about… He was beginning to get seriously frustrated. Kelly would have known she could not get away with those kinds of actions for very long.

Without thinking, he squatted down to Grace's level and quickly but firmly swatted her on the butt.

"Don't. Touch. Her." In an instant, Alyssa had crossed the kitchen to stand squarely in front of Gibbs. Her shoulders were thrown back and her hands clinched into fists.

After having spent a few days in the NCIS office watching Gibbs' team, she had seen multiple head smacks and heard more than a few threats. If Gibbs wanted to slap his team around, so be it. But this was different. This was her sister. This was _not _okay.

"Excuse me?" His blue eyes flashed only inches from hers, and his tall frame towered above her, but Alyssa didn't move or back down.

"I said, don't touch my sister. And don't give me any of that 'legal guardian' bullshit, either. You're not her father."

"Watch your language, Alyssa, unless you'd like some as well?" He was

seething now. Few had ever questioned his authority this far before, no one Alyssa's size before. If he weren't so furious, he'd be amused.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Wouldn't I?"

Gibbs and Alyssa were pulled from an epic stare-down by soft tugs on both of their sleeves. They looked down at Grace simultaneously.

She had stopped her crying complete and was now staring up at them with wide-eyes. "I'm hungry." Her left thumb slid back into her mouth.

Alyssa's eyes shot up and met Gibbs' before looking back down. She hadn't seen Gracie so calm since before her mother's funeral. An oven timer beep seemed to awake everyone from a trance. "Yeah, sweetie. You want some food?"

"Chicken's done." Gibbs turned and carefully removed the pan from the oven. "Set the table, Alyssa?" He sent a fierce glare her way, daring her to argue.

Alyssa met it strongly, but nodded. She hadn't forgotten her anger, nor had it lessened, but Gracie wasn't crying anymore. She would have done anything to keep Grace from crying, but Gibbs seemed to have solved that problem. She watched as Gracie opened the silverware drawer and began to remove pieces without being told.

Dinner passed in near silence, with only Grace chattering to herself, oblivious to the tension. Gibbs had never heard her talk so much. She told about her favorite color (pink), her favorite animal (dolphins), and her favorite subject in school (reading). Grace seemed to have emerged from her shell of quiet girl into a social butterfly.

Alyssa retreated immediately after dinner, but Grace stuck around. She helped him load dishes into the dishwasher and continued to talk herself in circles. She had apparently taken it upon herself to relate her entire six years worth of stories to Gibbs. He listened quietly, nodding at regular intervals.

Grace went suddenly silent and stared up at him with big brown eyes until he turned. "Are you my daddy now?"

"I can be if you want me to be, sweetheart."

She smiled and nodded. "Okee dokee." She was so darn cute.

Gibbs reached out and softly tugged one of her dirty blonde curls. "Ready for bed, princess?" She nodded and he easily lifted her into his arms.

Gibbs tucked his new daughter into her bed and trudged down the stairs. He opened the door and flipped the light switch, illuminating the slight figure of a teenage girl lying under the half-finished boat. "Hey."

Alyssa didn't move. "Why is there a boat in your basement?"

"I built it."

"Repeating the question, why is there a boat in your basement?" He just smiled at her. Alyssa rolled her eyes.

He stared silently at her, but sensing her reluctance to make conversation, picked up a strip of sandpaper and began working on the wood.

Alyssa lay on her back, her hands resting on her stomach,. A faded navy sweatshirt much too large for her fell off one shoulder. Her grey blue eyes were distant, as if she were on another planet entirely. Her teeth tugged gently at her lower lip.

Gibbs sighed and pulled up a chair next to the girl. "You don't have to worry, you know."

She didn't stir, but sighed deeply. "I dunno…"

"You're gonna be okay, Lyssa. I won't let anyone hurt you."

Now she turned her head towards him, her eyes widened. "What?"

"I'm not going to let him get near you."

She laughed a short sarcastic laugh, and turned her head away again. "God, Gibbs, sometimes you're really clueless."

Now he looked confused.

"It's not me that I'm worried about. It's Gracie. She's… little, and innocent, and sweet. But now her father's dead, and her mother's gone. She's in a new town, living in a new house with a man she doesn't know, meeting all these strange people, and suddenly a box arrives on her doorstep proving that someone's been stalking her." Gibbs started to interrupt her, saying that Grace didn't know about the box as neither of them had told her, but Alyssa cut him off. "Don't say that she doesn't know. She knows. She may not know exactly what's going on, but she's a smart girl and she knows that something's very wrong. But she's six years old, Gibbs!" Alyssa slammed her head against the wood in anger, twisted her feet around the edge of the boot to sit up and face him. "She's just a little girl. She can't handle all this! It's no wonder that she's sick."

His heart dropped in his chest at the young woman's worry for her sister. "She's not sick, Lyssa."

"Yes, she is! And you know it! She won't eat. Barely talks, even to me."

"Where you at dinner?"

Alyssa glared. "She just wants to go back home, okay?" A single uninvited tear trailed down Alyssa's cheek, but she didn't scrub it away, just stared at Gibbs with intense eyes filled with worries and sadness.

"She's going to be okay, I promise you." He wanted to reach out to her, even lifted his hand to wipe away the tear, but then slowly dropped it. She wasn't ready for that.

Alyssa took a deep, shaky breath, and then lay back again. "Whatever."

He gave up trying to reason with her. "You should get some sleep."

She shook her head. "Not tired."

"Fine. Your choice." Alyssa rolled over onto her side and closed her eyes, listened to the soft _swish-swish_ of the sandpaper on wood. Within fifteen minutes, she was sound asleep. Gibbs carefully removed her from under the boat and carried her upstairs. He laid her down softly in her bed, brushed a strand of blonde hair away from face and softly kissed her cheek. Climbing into his own bed, he thought of Kelly and Shannon, wondering how they would feel about the two little girls staying in his guest room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry it's been a while guys. Been a crazy busy week. Hope you enjoy this chapter. Maybe a new one by the end of the week. Maybe. Don't hold me to anything. :/ Review to make me happy?**

**Love, Ryleigh**

* * *

The next day, stress was running high in the Gibb's household. Everyone was feeling tense, and had scattered to their own amusements. Grace played quietly with her stuffed animals in her room, Alyssa was reading and listening to her iPod. Neither had shown up for breakfast, and it was nearly lunch time now. Gibbs had been working on his boat all morning, thinking about the case, but reluctant to leave the girls home alone. He was pulled from his musings by a ringing cell phone.

"Yeah, Gibbs."

"Hi, Gibbs! Guess who?"

"Watcha got, Abs?"

"Well. Don't play, then."

"Abby…"

"Right. As much as it pains me to say this, and it does, I have nothing. It's pretty hinky… This guy, he must have lived in latex gloves. There's not a single print on any of the pictures. The box, however, is covered in them. It looks like every postal worker in the United States touched this thing. I ran all the full prints I could get through IAFIS without a single hit." Gibbs sighed. "My sentiments, exactly. Hi, Tony!" Abby said loudly.

Gibbs pulled the phone away from his ear. "Put me on speakerphone, Abs." A soft beep and echoing sound informed him that he was. "DiNozzo."

"Hey boss! That Jason guy just got here…"

"Why didn't you call me?" Gibbs said angrily as he rose from his chair where he had been working on the boat and rushed upstairs.

"The line was busy-"

"Don't start questioning him without me." He flipped the phone closed. "Alyssa!"

Alyssa appeared from around the corner, smiling. "Yeah, boss?" He glared at her silently, but she just laughed. "What's up, Gibbs?"

"I'm going to NCIS." He pulled a jacket from the coat rack by the door and slipped it on. "I'll send DiNozzo over when I get there."

Alyssa stopped him by standing in front of the door."Please _don't_ do that. Tony has the humor of a four year old, and the X-rated thoughts of an eighteen year old. If you send him to 'protect' us, I will literally shoot myself."

Gibbs grinned at her accurate description of Tony. "Ziva, then, or McGee."

"No way. Listen, you need your team, and they need you. So you go to NCIS, and figure out what the he-" Her sentence broke. "Heck is going on, and I'll watch Gracie. We'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" His crystal blue glare was piercing.

"Positive."

Grace came into the room then, wearing a pink tee shirt covered in skull crossbones and a black tutu. A sparkling tiara was perched on her curly blonde pigtails. The six year old had adapted some of Abby's style with her own unconventional twist.

She stopped twirling around when she noticed the pair standing by the door."Are you leaving?" She looked up at Gibbs solemnly.

"Yep, but I'll be back real soon."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Pinky promise?" She stuck up a tiny pinky finger, nails painted a chipped black.

He wrapped his significantly larger finger around hers and squeezed. "Pinky promise." He unwrapped his hand and pointed sternly at Alyssa. "Call me, every hour, at least.

"Got it."

"Don't-"

"Leave the house or answer the door?"

"Right."

"Noted. Go catch some bad guys." Alyssa lifted Grace into her arms and together, they waved as Gibbs drove away to NCIS.

* * *

Four hours later, Alyssa sat on her bed, her iPod turned as loud as it would go. The volume was hurting her ears, but she preferred it that way. It drowned out the rest of the world, the rest of her worries.

It had been a long day, and it was only two o'clock. Even after Gibbs had left, Grace had retreated back to her room. Alyssa had even offered to play Grace's favorite game, Pretty Pretty Princess, with her, but she had refused even that.

She had thought that surely her sister was mad at Gibbs. Alyssa herself had been furious. How dare he lay a hand on her sister? Maybe her tantrum had been a bit dramatic, and she had been frustrating Alyssa to no end, hanging on her twenty four-seven. But, still. His reaction had been completely inappropriate. Right? But then, when he left, Grace seemed upset. That didn't make any sense, did it?

Alyssa shook her head, pulling herself from her musings, and looked at the clock beside her bed. It was almost four o'clock. She could feel her stomach rumbling, so she got up to fix peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for Grace and herself. She danced out of the room and down the hallway, listening to her iPod and jamming to music so loud it could be heard feet away. Rocking out and singing along, she spun out of the hallway to see the barrel of a gun pointed at her forehead. She gasped, yanked the headphones from her ears.

"Hello, Alyssa. It's been a while." The man in front of her was tall, strong, bulky, and ugly. A black baseball cap shaded his eyes, and he wore a blue non-descript tee-shirt with jeans and dirty Nikes. Alyssa could only see the bottom of his face, sweating and fat, but she immediately recognized him as the man driving the SUV that had killed her mother. With one tattooed arm, he held a flailing Grace up from the floor, where she kicked and fought frantically against him. His hand wrapped around her mouth, but Alyssa could still hear her cries. Why hadn't Alyssa heard her before? And where was Gibbs when you needed him?

Alyssa tried to keep a cool head. "Who are you? How did you get in here?"

"Thought that CSI guy you're stayin' with would've updated his security since you two arrived, but I guess he's been too busy, what with that box I sent and all. I'm afraid I can't tell you my name, darlin'." He said gruffly, Southern voice loud to be heard over Grace's cries. "Never know who could be listenin' in." He glanced around the perimeter of the room, as if looking for an audio or video recording device. Alyssa wondered if there was one that she hadn't noticed before. He waved his gun over his shoulder, towards the back door. "Time to go."

"I don't think so." Alyssa looked around for something she could use a weapon, but saw nothing she could reach. Nothing that would be any defense against his gun, anyways.

The gunman directed the barrel away from Alyssa to Grace. Alyssa slowly raised her hands into the air in the universal sign of surrender. "All right, okay. I'll do what you want."

"That's what I thought." The strange man smiled creepily and tightened his grip around the squirming girl in his arms. "Let's go."

Two hours later, Alyssa's hands were tied behind her back to a chair, and she had been gagged and blindfolded. She was inwardly kicking herself for not having taken some kind of self-defense class. A rough hand pulled the blindfold from her eyes and revealed the same strong man that had carried her away like she weighed nothing after she had started to fight back. She had been tied and thrown into the back of a van as her sister sat crying in the front seat.

Now Alyssa was being contained in a small, dirty room, only a little bigger than a closet. A single light bulb hang from a wire on the ceiling, providing barely any light. The room smelled of mildew and sweat.

Alyssa fingered the rough rope tied tightly around her wrists as the man removed her gag. She could just reach into the back pocket of her jeans. She wished she had kept a knife there. Wasn't that one of Gibbs' rules? Dang. She was good at breaking those. "So, since you're not going to tell me you're name, I suppose I can just call you Dick. You know, like Richard. That's okay, right, Dick?" Alyssa smiled sarcastically. She almost wondered that she could still manage sarcasm in such a traumatic situation, but figured it was too ingrained into her brain to stop now.

'Dick' grimaced. "Sure, Alyssa. We can stick with that." This guy was heinous, but suprisingly unbreakable.

"Okay, Dick." Alyssa stopped smiling. Fury rippled through her words. "What do you want from me?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He grinned. Alyssa fought against the restraints, trying to kick him where it would really hurt, but the ropes were too thick. "Feisty, aren't we?"

"Where's my sister?"

"Oh, she's fine, Alyssa. I wouldn't worry about her. She, unlike you, has been very cooperative."

"You were driving the SUV." She said, and he nodded. "You killed my mother."

"You're a smart kid. Smarter than I gave you credit for." He chuckled slightly, twisted the gun in his hand.

Alyssa was unintimidated. "And my father?"

"Yep, him too.

"Why?" Each word that left her mouth was ice cold and chillingly calm.

"You ask a lot of questions, missy, you know that?" When Alyssa stayed silent, he continued. "Suppose there's no harm in tellin' ya now. It's not like you're going to get the chance to tell anyone else." Dick smiled eerily, pulled another chair from the corner of the room. He straddled the back of it, sitting directly across from her but still keeping his distance. "The story starts back a good, oh, twenty or so years ago. Your mom and me, when we were in high school. Maria, she was such a pretty girl. Looked a lot like you do now. That pretty gold hair." Using his free hand, Dick reached up and pushed a sweaty strand from Alyssa's face. She twisted away and sent him a glare full of hatred. "Big ol' temper like yours too. Anyway, Maria and me went out a few times through school. But then the summer before she went to college, she met that marine fella, Daniel. I told her, he was no good. I was the right guy for her, I knew it, but she didn't believe me!" His eyes flashed strangely, telling Alyssa he was reliving a memory of years ago. She felt a chill run down her spine. "I said, 'don't stay with him, Ria, he's no good.' But she didn't listen. She went and married him. But I told her, I did. I said, 'if you go off with him, I'll kill him'." His eyes flashed again, and he looked up at Alyssa. "And I did. And everything was fine for a few years. I watched you and Gracie growing up, watched Ria take care of ya'll. And it made me happy, it really did. Just to see her so happy with you. But then that guy, Jason. He was gonna take her away again! I thought, if she can't be with me, she can't be with anyone. It hurt me, really, to try to kill you two, but I didn't have any options. She had to die, and you were too old by then. I was going to take Gracie, that little image of her momma, and take care of her."

"Don't you dare touch Gracie!" Alyssa growled, straining harder against her bonds than before. She could feel the rope cutting through her skin as she fought to keep tears from spilling from her eyes.

"Now now, Alyssa. Everything's almost over now. No need to get worked up." Dick smiled a wicked grin. "I don't plan on keeping sweet Gracie anymore. That was a silly idea to begin with. A little girl like her is just too much trouble. Silly me..."

He paused, and Alyssa spoke up. "Are you done with your monologue now?"

"Yes, I am, sweetheart." He stood up and moved the chair back to its place. "Just one last thing." He bent over slightly, his sweating face inches from Alyssa. She cringed but didn't say anything. "I want you to know that I did what I had to do. Now I'm just tying up the loose ends." With that final note, he turned and left the room, shutting the door firmly behind him.

Alyssa thought for a moment, contemplating all that he had said. This man was absolutely crazy. And now he was alone with Gracie. She screamed in frustration, but there was no response that she could hear.

Alyssa fidgeted more against her binds, hitting the back pocket of her jeans. She scoffed. "That guy may be crazy, but he's also really stupid." She said softly to herself. Slowly she removed her cell phone from her back pocket. With her hands tied, she couldn't move enough to see the screen. She silently thanked the hours she had spent not paying attention in class and sending text messages blindly from her pocket instead. She went at the keys faster than she ever had before.

Six-six-six-seven-seven-seven-six-six-six-enter-down-enter.

Now she only had to wait for a reply.


	5. Chapter 5

**It's Ryleigh again! New chapter! Eeeep! Rated T for language. I usually refrain from using it, but people have been kidnapped. In that kind of situation, curse words are your friends. Review, favorite, maybe? Thanks for reading! (P.S.- Shoutout to Irishdipstick in 4th paragraph. You know what I'm talking about, Gillian. If you haven't read her stories yet, you should! After you read mine, of course.)**

* * *

Very Special Agent Tony Dinozzo stared across the bullpen to the interrogation rooms, wondering again what was going on inside. Gibbs had gone into the room with Jason Hawkins more than an hour ago, with an order that no one enter the observation room. Tony looked at his watch again. He was really starting to worry about what was going on in there...

"Aren't you supposed to be doing _something_, Tony?" Ziva David looked up from her desk, raising one eyebrow.

"Not a thing, Ziva." He picked up a small ball from his desk, tossed it up in th air and caught it, just to annoy her. He laughed as she sighed and turned back to her computer.

Tony's cell phone vibrated, and he flipped it open. _New Text Message from: Alyssa_. He groaned inwardly. He thought Alyssa was sweet, but she was obviously addicted to texting. The teenager had been sending him questions constantly since he met her. _Whats rule number 15?_ Always work as a team. _Do you think Gibbs would notice if I snuck some of his bourbon? _Most definitely. _How is he going to get the boat out of the basement? _Tony wished he knew.

He opened the text message, and stared at it confusedly. It read only three letters: SOS.

"Huh." No one stirred. Tony cleared his throat and spoke louder. "Huh."

"What, Tony?" Ziva looked up from her desk, annoyed.

"Got a text from Alyssa."

Ziva's eyes widened. "So...?"

"It says, SOS." McGee looked up. "That's it."

McGee rose and walked to Tony's desk to look at the cellphone, as if more information would magically appear on the screen. "Why would she send a distress signal?" he asked.

"I don't know, probie, unless she was _in distress_." Tony stood up, tossing McGee the phone, and tucked his gun into the waistband of his jeans. "Text her back and find out what's going on. I'm going to talk to Gibbs."

"He doesn't like to be interrupted in interrogation..."

"I know that, McGeek, but I think this might be an exception."

McGee stared at the phone silently for a moment. "You don't think she's joking, do you?"

Tony stared at McGee blankly, then head-slapped him. He shook his head as he walked off.

* * *

Alyssa felt the phone vibrate violently in her hand, almost falling to the floor. She grasped it tightly just before it slipped and released her held breath. Tony had texted her back. She flipped the phone open and went through all the motions of opening a new message, before realizing that she couldn't read it with her hands still tied behind her back. She groaned. Maybe if she turned just the right wriggled around in the chair.. Nope, still nothing. She could just see the faint glow radiating from the screen in the darkness. She contemplated the situation for a few moments, then slowly lifted her right foot and tucked it underneath her. The phone slid in between two toes, and she was able to pull it away enough to read the screen. She felt like cheering in success, but reigned in her emotions.

__

It's mcgee. whats going?

What, exactly, was she supposed to reply? _Hey McGee, It's Alyssa. I've been detained by that crazy stalker guy, and now I'm tied up in a dark room, no idea where I am. Tell Gibbs he should really update his security system. _She scoffed. Yeah, that would work. Carefully, she pushed the phone back into her hands and pushed her foot back to the floor. She wanted to be as inconspicious as possible if Dick popped back in. She typed in and sent a reply back to NCIS.

* * *

"Agent Gibbs, you're needed outside." Gibbs glared into the mirror, hoping someone was on the receiving end. He didn't say anything to Jason, who was sitting silently across the table from him, just exited the room. Tony stood outside, looking nervous. "I know I've told you not to interrupt me in interrogation before..."

"Yeah, I know, boss, but I think you might change your mind this time." Gibbs stared at him silently. "I got a text from Alyssa. Sierra Oscar Sierra."

"_What?"_

"McGee texted her back and he's trying to trace the signal. We don't know what's going on-" Tony jogged to catch up with Gibbs who was now sprinting back to the bullpen.

"We got a reply, boss." McGee looked up from the computer to Ziva, who read outloud from the small cell screen.

"Captured, tied up, not sure where. Grace is here too, somewhere." Ziva's wide brown eyes looked upset.

Gibbs removed his gun from the desk drawer and ran to the elevator. "DiNozzo, David, with me. McGee, keep tracing the number. Get the phone to Abby. I want someone in contact with Alyssa at all times."

Within two minutes, the team had loaded into the car and were speeding towards the downtown location McGee had given them.

They arrived at the building ten minutes later with Gibbs driving, though the trip should have taken at least twenty. Even Ziva seemed a little shaken as the team all stumbled out of the car.

Gibbs spoke into his cell phone. "McGee. Heard back from Alyssa?"

_"Sorry, boss. No reply."_

"Damn it." Now he was getting seriously worried. He flipped the phone closed and tucked it into his pocket. Why wasn't she responding to Abby's texts?

In front of them stood a crooked and desolate office building that looked as if it had been abandoned for years. It was three stories tall, but spread wide. Windows were spread along the outside of the building, but every one was covered in a dark curtain. A dark and empty van was parked outside. It was a deserted part of town; no one was around.

Gibbs sighed and pulled his gun. Getting in unnoticed would be difficult after their tire-squealing entry. The kidnapper probably already knew they were here.

* * *

Alyssa cringed as the door to the closet-like room swung open. Dick re-entered. He looked furious. "You called the cops?"

"What? No!" Alyssa slid her phone back into her pocket, praying he hadn't noticed that she had it. Was the team here for her already? Could they get past this psychopath?

"You bitch!" Alyssa cried out as his hand came fast across her face, leaving a stinging five-fingered print across her left cheek. She took a deep breath and tried to keep tears from falling down.

Slowly, she lifted her head up again. She was seething. "You're going to regret doing that."

"Yep, you are." Alyssa gasped again as Tony appeared in the doorway and brought his gun down hard on the back of Dick's head. He startled, then fell unconscious to the ground.

Alyssa took a slow deep breath and leaned her head against the back of the chair. "Took you long enough, DiNozzo."

He couldn't help but smile. This kid was more like Gibbs every day. "Sorry, I was busy trying to act like I was busy. You know how it is." He walked around behind her and cut the restraints binding her to the chair.

Alyssa stood up and shook her wrists, trying to get the blood flowing through them again. She looked down at the man lying on the floor. "Where's Grace?"

"Downstairs with boss and Ziva. She's fine." Tony removed a set of cuffs from his belt and tightened them around the guy's hands. He then kicked opened the door and yelled down the hallway. "He's down, boss. Alyssa's okay."

Gibbs appeared at the top of a staircase to Alyssa's left, looking anxious. She slowly raised her right hand. "Hey."

"Hey." He glanced in the supply closet at the man on the floor. Gibbs seriously considered shooting him like he wanted to, but resisted. He had more important matters to deal with at the moment. He looked back up to Alyssa apprehensively. "You alright?"

She nodded. "Fine." Alyssa followed his gaze back down. She tilted her head and stared at the unconscious figure. "I guess you wouldn't let me borrow your gun real fast..."

"Nope."

"Damn. Guess I'll have to settle for this, then." She lifted her Converse-clad right foot and landed a fierce kick between the man's legs. He moaned but stayed down. She smiled as she looked back up to Gibbs. "I feel better."

"Good girl." He slung his arm over her shoulder and nodded to DiNozzo. "Take care of this. We're going home."


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi again. Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed/favorited/alerted my story (that still has a sucky title, I know). It means a lot! This is the last installment in New Beginnings, but I may continue it as a series. I won't be a comment whore, and say if you don't review or favorite or whatever, I won't write anymore. I write for me. BUT keep in mind that your review/whatevers do help me a lot, so if you would like to read more, maybe hit up my profile and vote in the poll? I would really love it if you did! Thanks. :) Love, Rye **

The next day was filled with exhaustingly long hours spent filling out the required paperwork and taking the required statements. It was the one part of Gibbs' job that he thoroughly hated. Usually, he dumped the casework down to DiNozzo or McGee, but he felt obligated to handle it this time. It was, after all, his fault. He had left Alyssa and Grace alone to go back to NCIS. If he had stayed, he had no doubt that he would've caught the guy before he even got close to the girls. He probably also would have shot him. Both Alyssa and Grace would have been saved the traumatic experience. But, he hadn't. He put the case before the children in his care.

And now he was beating himself up about it.

Both Alyssa and Grace were also at NCIS and under constant supervision. Grace was becoming a permanent fixture beside Tony's desk (he tended to have more toys than the others). Alyssa was rebelling slightly by spending her time in Autopsy with Ducky when he wasn't busy, instead of sticking with an actual agent. She had reasoned with him that the kidnapper had already been put away, and it wasn't her fault that she had inherited an murderous stalker, so she shouldn't be punished for it.

"Abby."

"Gibbs! Hi!" Abby jumped from her chair and wrapped her arms around his neck. It amazed him how the Goth seemed to always be in such a good mood. "How are you? How are Lyssa and Gracie?"

"They're both okay, now."

"Good!" Abby smiled widely and happily.

"Abs. The case."

"Oh! Right!" Abby clicked something into her computer, and the face of the kidnapper appeared on the screen. "Dick here is actually Landon Byrd. Hails from Macon, Georgia, where Maria Tanner is also from. He seems to have followed her around the country, went wherever she went. He did a pretty good job on Lt. Tanner a few years ago, and a few months ago on Maria, too. I did finally match a print from the box of photos to a set that the police sent me after his arrest." She turned back from her computer to face him. "He definitely sent that box, Gibbs."

He sighed and strode back to the elevator. "Thanks, Abby." She gave him a small sad smile. He made the "I love you" hand sign as the doors slid close.

When he arrived back at the bullpen to find DiNozzo goofing around with Grace. She was rolling around on the floor, squealing with laughter, as Tony mercilessly tickled her tummy. Normally, Gibbs would have slapped him, told him to get back to work, but all he cared about then was that he was making Grace laugh. That was more important than anything else.

DiNozzo looked up as he passed. "Jason's in the clear, boss. He took the first plane out this morning." He went back to tickling his captive, whose squeals escalated each second.

"Good." He chuckled at Grace's pleas to escape. At least she was finally enjoying herself.

* * *

"Hey, Duck." Gibbs exited the elevator into autopsy, followed by Tony. All the tables were clear, minus the one that held Alyssa. She sat cross-legged as Ducky bandaged her bleeding wrists. The binds had done more damage than originally thought.

"Hello, Jethro, Anthony. I'm just finishing up Alyssa's bandages. All done, dear." The doctor stood up straight, and Alyssa jumped up from her seat.

She smiled and kissed him softly on the cheek. "Thanks, Ducky."

"Hey, I saved your life, kid. I didn't even get a hug!" Tony moved around from behind Gibbs to stand in front of Alyssa.

She shrugged but smiled. "I don't like you that much."

Gibbs laughed then pointed to the elevator. "Gracie's looking for you. DiNozzo, take her upstairs."

"Sure, boss." He trailed Alyssa to the elevator, looking puzzled. "I just don't get it. The ladies love me."

"Ducky. How are they?"

"Both well, I believe. Alyssa is a little scraped up around her wrists from fighting the binds, and she may have a bit of a bruise on her face, but otherwise fine. Grace is perfectly healthy. It seems to me she must have been more compliant, and it paid off for her. Neither seem very traumatized."

"Good."

"Of course, post-traumatic stress disorder is fairly likely."

"Well, what do I do about that?"

Ducky shrugged his shoulders. "Therapy would be my suggestion."

Gibbs took a deep breath and headed back towards the elevator. "Consider it done. Thanks, Ducky."

"You are very welcome, Jethro."

By the time Gibbs arrived back at the bullpen, Grace had fallen asleep by Tony's desk, and Alyssa was talking with Ziva and Abby. He carefully cradled the sleeping child into his arms and carried her back to the elevator, motioning Alyssa to follow him. She jumped up from the chair she had been sitting in, hugged Ziva, Abby, and McGee, then skidded into the elevator . Tony's laugh could be heard through the metal doors.

Alyssa stood quietly as the elevator dropped, watching Gibbs from behind. He was staring at the door, holding Grace in his arms. She looked so sweet asleep and cuddled up against him. "I told you Jason didn't do it."

He turned around slowly as to not wake Grace. "Yeah, you were right. He's a pretty good guy."

She scoffed. "I guess."

"I thought you liked Jason?"

"My mom did. And Gracie loved him. He bought her Barbies."

"So you don't like Jason?"

"Not really. He tried to 'buy' my love. Mine and Grace's, anyways. She loves Barbies, and she was too little to understand what he was trying to do. He bought me a fancy bracelet too, but I sold it to a chick for a pack of-" She glanced up at him. "Gum."

"Uh-huh."

"Anyways, I didn't like him that much, but I knew he couldn't have killed my mom. I think he seriously liked her." He just nodded, and the elevator was silent until the doors dinged open. They walked, still quiet, to the car where Gibbs loaded Grace into a car seat in the back. It was pitch dark outside by that time, and he struggled trying to figure out the straps. Alyssa sat up front, tapping her foot against the dash. "Do you need some help with that?"

"No, I got it."

"Right..." A good two minutes later, they finally pulled out of the NCIS parking lot. "So I know you're going to want to beat yourself up over leaving us at home today. I understand. In fact, I'd be willing to help if you wanted." He couldn't help but chuckle at that. "But you know he would've gotten to us somehow, someway, sooner or later. And you got there before anyone got hurt. You caught Psycho-Bastard-Dick. So I would consider this a success."

He proccessed this for a moment, then nodded. "If you say so."

"I do. Mostly because I have this sinking feeling you'd be hell to live with if you were mad at yourself for leaving us alone."

"I know I've told you before to watch your language."

"You curse. I've heard you."

"I'm an adult."

"That is extremely ageist. I'm offended."

"All the same."

"Whatever..."

"We'll talk about the attitude later."

"I'm already looking forward to it."

* * *

_Three weeks later_

Alyssa sat down in the green grass and threaded the blades through her fingers, deep in thought.

It had been a month now, since her mother had died, and she had come to stay with Gibbs. It felt like everything had changed. She had been in a car accident that killed her mother (and survived), kidnapped by a murderous stalker (and survived), and been given the infamous Gibbs stare (and survived). She still felt lost, confused, depressed, but she couldn't help but notice the underlying truth. She _had _survived. Maybe there was some reason behind all that.

She also thought about Grace. She would be entering second grade at a new school this year, and her seventh birthday was quickly approaching. Alyssa wondered how she would handle all of that without her mom's support. She had often felt like a mother to Grace before, watching her as Maria worked late nights and long days. But now she would have to be more of a mother to the girl than she ever had before.

Not to mention her own troubles. Her sophmore year in high school was also coming up. She dreaded being the new kid at a school probably filled with navy brats. A thought suddenly hit her and her body tensed. What if Gibbs sent her to military school? She just as quickly relaxed. He wouldn't, couldn't, not with Grace around. So it was public high school for her, with plently of lockers she hoped were not Alyssa-sized. She had survived before, though. She'd do it again.

Alyssa stood up, fingered the edge of her black button-up top and adjusted her skirt. She straightened her shoulders and tossed back her hair. Slowly, she dropped a single daisy to the ground on her mother's grave. She would survive. She would thrive. And she would be strong. For Gracie. For her father. For Gibbs. For her mother. But mostly, for herself.


End file.
